Medical Centre will increase Nebo liveability

Finally, the Isaac Regional Council has announced it has awarded the tender of the centre to Best Practice OHS and expects it will be up and running before the end of the year.

Mayor Anne Baker says she is both relieved and excited.

"The process has been down a path difficult to traverse," says Cr Baker.

"The Nebo Medical Centre comprises two consultation rooms, a treatment room, a sterilisation room and a waiting room and there is also provision for a dentist at a later point."

The facility officially opened in June 2011, after the council secured a $500,000 Federal Government grant.

Since then the council has been unable to negotiate a contract with a doctor and the facility has sat unused.

Mother of two and member of the Nebo Community Development Group Tracy Person says opening the centre will make Nebo more liveable.

"When my daughter was younger she got sand in her eyes and they got quite irritated and infected and so to drive to town when she was really upset with pain in her eyes... it would be so much easier to pop up the road in Nebo and just go and see a doctor.

"All that was needed was eye drops and it would have been fixed but I didn't have any in the house."

Mrs Pearson says the community feels very frustrated that the centre has sat empty.

"I guess there wasn't a great deal of communication from the council to the community as to what has been the process in those two years and what has been happening.

"There has been quite a level of frustration in the community and people thinking, why they aren't using this building for other purposes if that's the case."

The lack of medical facilities means families have become very resourceful in the town.

"If you need something and you don't have it and you don't necessarily want to drive to town then you call your friends and see if they've got something.

"It's not that far to drive but if you've got little kids and depending on the time of the day, you have to get them there, you have to get them to sit still for that long."

However Mrs Pearson cautions the new operators won't survive without the support of the mining companies.

"I think everyone knows that's an issue and I'm sure that they would come on board wanting to support the local community," says Mrs Pearson.

At present mining companies direct their staff to have their check-ups in Moranbah.

"It is such a small population within the town itself so if they can have that support they won't have any dramas."